Thousands of Turkish troops have invaded northern Cyprus after last-minute talks in the Greek capital, Athens, failed to reach a solution.
Tension has been running high in the Mediterranean island since a military coup five days ago in which President Archbishop Makarios, a Greek Cypriot, was deposed.
The coup led to fears among the Turkish Cypriot community that the Greek-backed military rulers would ignore their rights and press for unification for Cyprus with Greece or enosis.
Archbishop Makarios became the republic's first elected president in 1959 only after agreeing to give up plans for a union with Greece.
A Turkish armada of 33 ships, including troop transporters and at least 30 tanks and small landing craft, has landed on the northern coast.
Airlifted to safety
The bulk of the Greek fleet put to sea last night from the island of Salamis.
There are reports of clashes between Greek and Turkish warships near Paphos, a port in south-western Cyprus.
Greek Cypriot forces on the island have been defending the northern coast, around Kyrenia.
The capital, Nicosia, has seen most of the fighting. Turkish paratroops and tanks have been battling for control of the airport - but they have met fierce resistance from the Greek forces.
Shops and offices in the Greek sector of the capital have been deserted since midday yesterday as rumour of the impending invasion spread.
In some parts of the city there were traffic jams as residents tried to flee to the safety of the countryside.
More than 4,500 Britons and other foreign nationals have been moved to the safety of army bases and others have been airlifted to safety in specially-chartered planes.
So far there has been no indication of the casualty figure, but it is thought the Greeks have suffered most from air strikes.
Although Greek military reports from Nicosia claim significant progress has been made against the Turkish forces. Several Turkish planes are reported to have been shot down and "enemy forces" kept out of Turkish Cypriot villages in the north of the island
The Turks have made it clear they will not settle for anything less than the removal of the newly-imposed Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Sampson.
The Rape of a Country
CYPRUS AND THE TURKISH INVASlON
Cyprus has played a major part in the history of the Eastern Mediterranean. The island's prehistory runs as far back as the beginning of the 6th millennium BC. Early in the 2nd millennium BC the Achaean-Greeks established city-kingdoms on the Mycenaean model and introduced the Greek language, the Greek religion and the Greek way of life.
The character of the island has always rgmained unchanged, in spite of the many conquerors it has known-Persians, Romans, Venetians etc.
In 1571 the island was conquered by the Ottomans. The Turkish occupation lasted until 1878, when the Turks ceded Cyprus to Britain.
British rule lasted until 1960, when the island was declared an independent state, under the London-Zurich agreements.
The 1960 Constitution of the Cyprus Republic proved unworkable in many of its provisions and this made impossible its smooth implementation. When in 1963 the President of the Republic proposed some amendments to facilitate the functioning of the state the Turkish community replied with rebellion (DEC 1963), the Turkish Ministers withdrew from the Cabinet and the Turkish public servants ceased attending their offices. Ever since then the aim of the Turkish Cypriot leadership, acting on instructions from the Turkish Government, has been the partitioning of Cyprus and annexation by Turkey. In July-August 1974 a coup was staged in Cyprus by the Greek military junta, then in power, for the overthrow of President Makarios and Turkey used this pretext to launch an invasion with a fully fledged army against defenseless Cyprus. The invasion was carried out in two stages in which the Turkish troops eventually occupied 40% of the island's territory, and has been called by the Turks themselves-without shame-Attila operation.
Ankara tried to justify the invasion as a peace operation aimed at establishing the constitutional order disturbed by the coup, but even after the restoration of such order and the return of President Makarios to the island in December 1974, the Turkish troops remained to back up the plans of Turkey to colonize Cyprus as a first step to annexation. Two hundred thousand Greek Cypriots, 40o% of the total Greek Cypriot population, were forced to leave their homes in the occupied area and were turned into refugees. The few thousands of Greek Cypriots who remained in their homes after the completion of the invasion were gradually forced through intimidation methods to leave their homes and move to the south.
In utter disregard of repeated U.N. resolutions calling for the respect of the independence. Sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus as well as the withdrawal of all foreign troops from its territory and the adoption of all practical measures to promote the effective implementation of the relevant resolutions, Turkey is continuing the occupation of 40% of Cyprus territory.
This attitude of Turkey as well as the continuing violation of the fundamental human rights of the people of Cyprus have been condemned by international bodies, such as the U.N. General Assembly, the Non aligned Movement, the Commonwealth and the Council of Europe. The recently declassified report of the latter's Commission of Human Rights is very revealing of the atrocities committed by the Turkish forces of occupation.
turkish hypocrsy at its finest
The armenians and greeks comprised much more than 18% back in the ottoman empire, and then the murderers wiped them off the map claiming it was a response to a rebellion against the empire !
So what do they do next ? They do exactly the opposite of what they claim above... 60 something yrs later !!
They insurrect a rebellion of TC's ( TMT ) against the cyprus republic !
Quote:The armenians and greeks comprised much more than 18% back in the ottoman empire, and then the murderers wiped them off the map claiming it was a response to a rebellion against the empire !
I can't find words in English to express my gratitude to Talat Pasha and others who successfully carried out the Armenian deportation and the population exchange with Greece. We should erect a giant statute of Talat Pasha near the Armenian border, and of Tepedelenli Ali Pasha in Edirne.
TiLeiOhMaleas Moderator
Posts: 2320
(7/21/07 6:34 pm)
Re: turkish hypocrsy at its finest
1964, on this day......
"The Turkish Cypriot leaders have adhered to a rigid stand against any measures which might involve having members of the two communities live and work together, or which might place Turkish Cypriots in situations where they would have to acknowledge the authority of Government agents.
Indeed, since the Turkish Cypriot leadership is committed to physical and geographical separation of the communities as a political goal it is not likely to encourage activities by Turkish Cypriots which may be interpreted as demonstrating the merits of an alternative policy. The result has been a seemingly deliberate policy of self-segregation by the Turkish Cypriots."
Report S/6426 of the United Nations Secretary General, 10 June 1964
On This Day -20 July 
We should erect a giant statute of Talat Pasha near the Armenian border, and of Tepedelenli Ali Pasha in Edirne.
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